My wife and I were on our way back from visiting the family in nowhere, TX and as you go from town to town the speed limit drops from 70, to 55, to 40 to 30 progressively until you are in town. At each point I would set the cruise to avoid getting caught by the "law". This is usually the sheriff in a truck without any lights even. Anyway, I set the cruise at 30 as I am coming into town and sure enough here comes the aforementioned sheriff. I pull over and he proceeds to tell me I was clocked at 40 in a 30. This is in fact impossible because I was at 30 (cruise regulated) before the sign. He wrote me a ticket, but said the judge would dismiss it if my wheels proved to be causing the excess speed. I was in our Tahoe and we have 22" wheels on it. He said all I need to do is take it to a transmission shop which can verify that it is off by 10mph at 30, and send that to the judge.

So my question is, does anyone know of a place where I can go and get this taken care of? I have 10 days to respond to the citation. Thanks.

blaausl10

11-24-08, 09:51 AM

I dont know if the judge would see this a credible but you can google tire size calculator and put in the original size and the aftermarket wheel size and it will tell you how far off your speedo is.

dannboss

11-24-08, 10:08 AM

I just spoke with the judge and he mentioned that I just need a recipt from somewhere that will show that it has been recalibrated. I don't need proof that it was off, just that it was fixed. I called the dealership and they charge $99.50! :annoyed: So that may help with some ideas if anyone knows of a dealership or transmission place in North Texas that can "recalibrate" and print a bill of service.

lollygagger8

11-24-08, 10:34 AM

Well, is $99.95 < ticket? If so, do it! Plus you won't have a ticket on your record.

dannboss

11-24-08, 10:40 AM

Technically, yes. I called another dealership and they said it isn't even possible to do that, and the dealership trying to charge me is probably doing nothing more that giving you the receipt you want. Still weighing my options.

darkman

11-24-08, 11:46 AM

Technically, yes. I called another dealership and they said it isn't even possible to do that, and the dealership trying to charge me is probably doing nothing more that giving you the receipt you want. Still weighing my options.

I suspect that it is doable - a lot of handheld tuners let you select gear ratios and tire diameters to correct the speedometer for changes. Additionally, the cost of having it actually calibrated could prevent future tickets if you continue to use your cruise control trick.

blaausl10

11-24-08, 12:26 PM

If you get it re-calibrated then your odometer will start reflecting the correct mileage again. The larger rims have been keeping the miles down.

dirt_cheap_fleetwood

11-24-08, 02:35 PM

What year is the truck? If it is a later one with a computer controlled dash (nearly everything after 1990 was like this) then all they have to do is recalibrate it with a Tech2. If it is older and has a cable driven speedo then it is more complicated. You would have to change the gear inside the transmission so that it is still the same ratio.

dannboss

11-24-08, 02:37 PM

Fortunately (or unfortunately depending on how you look at it) the speedometer/odometer is not off. I used my GPS to track my speed and it was dead on at 30mph. My guess is that he clocked someone else and it wasn't me. The argument that the calibration is off is a good way out of a ticket since he suggested it. In the long run though, I don't really need anything changed, just something that says it was.

p0ng0rs

11-24-08, 03:37 PM

so install quickbooks and fake it? haha. $100 is WELL worth paying to avoid something in the record here in CT, you'll end up paying 30 times that over the course of the 3 to 5 years your insurance is raised.